ISLAMABAD(National times)- Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is fully aware of the ongoing flood situation and has directed urgent relief operations in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). According to Tarar, the prime minister has instructed the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Lt Gen Inam Haider to maintain constant coordination with the KP government to expedite relief activities in the affected areas. He further revealed that a special cell has been established at the Prime Minister’s Office, which is in 24-hour contact with the NDMA. “PM Shehbaz Sharif has personally visited the NDMA headquarters three times during the recent spell of rains and flooding to review rescue and relief efforts,” said the information minister. Tarar emphasised that the government’s primary focus remains on rescue and relief operations.

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Efforts are underway to safeguard human lives, he added. The information minister also highlighted that the NDMA’s Command and Control Centre is operational round the clock and is closely monitoring the evolving situation. Torrential rains, cloudbursts, and flash floods have wreaked devastation across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), claiming at least 146 lives, injuring dozens, and leaving many missing. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s districts of Battagram, Bajaur, and Mansehra, cloudbursts, flash floods, and landslides have claimed 146 lives, injured over 123 people, and left many missing.